Compact hand-operated family type washing machine



E. BIFFANI April 21, 1964 COMPACT HAND-OPERATED FAMILY TYPE WASHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 10, 1962 IN V EN TOR. 6m?! fiF/ZN/ BY United States Patent 3,129,575 COMPACT HAND-OPERATED FAMILY TYPE WASHING MACHINE Ettore Bilfani, Via G. B. De Rossi 32, Rome, Italy Filed Oct. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 229,560 Claims priority, application Italy July 12, 1962 2 Claims. (Cl. 68-132) The mechanical family-type washing machines, now so widely used in day-to-day household work, are still presenting certain defects opposing their full and universal adoption. In effect, they are still expensive and bulky, so that in frequent cases no space can be found in modern homes where they can be located when working, and even more when idle. As regards the price, even though builders are now offering easy credit terms, these machines are still far from being within everybodys financial reach.

This invention is concerned with a laundry washing machine which, while retaining all characteristic features of the best washing machines now on the market, differs from them chiefly in its low weight, low cost, portability and great compactness.

One advantage of the washing machine described herein is that of obtaining a succession of compression and releases in the fabrics to be washed, this being achieved in the simplest imaginable way and with no danger of damaging even the most delicate laundry. This is achieved by pressing the laundry lightly between the flexible walls of the container by means of flexible vanes or paddles which, with their outer edges, cause the laundry to press against the said walls, while, with a reciprocating motion controlled by a hand crank, it is possible to regulate at will the resistance opposed by the laundry in passing through the narrowest point between the outer edge of the said flexible paddles and the inner face of the flexible container walls. Other advantages are the impossibility of incorrect operations, the great simplicity, low cost, compactness and the ease with which the machine can be carried anywhere, either for operation or storage.

Further advantages and features of the invention will be made evident by the following detailed description, which will be more easily understood by referring to the figures in the enclosed table of drawings, which represents, as a non-limiting example, one preferred embodiment hereof.

In the table:

FIG. 1 is a view, in plan, of the washer body, of plastic material, and the central stirring device;

FIG. 2 is a cross section of the machine shown in FIG. 1.

With reference to the figures, the machine comprises a substantially square container 4, with rounded corners, fitted on one face, to the side and near the bottom, with a hole 6 in which a sealing plug 23 can be inserted. In the center of the bottom side of container 4, on the inside thereof, is attached a support 7 on which rests the lower tip of a tapered support pin 8' which is part of a bellshaped body 8, attached to a hollow shaft 11. At the upper end and axially with it, shaft 11 has a recess into which is fitted a bushing 12 upon which is centered a square stud 13, forming the end of a crank 14 fitted at the other free end with a handle knob 16. Support 7, which constitutes one of the pivots around which rotates bell body 8, and more precisely receives the lower tip of taper 8, widens into a funnel 711 to facilitate the introduction into support 7. The other end of shaft 11 is rotatable in a cylindrical hole provided in the narrow portion of a funnel 19 attached to the washer lid 15. In this cylindrical hole rotates shaft 21 of crank 14. On the upper edge of container 4 is provided a shoulder 18 above which edge 4' projects an inch or so, in order that, should soapy water or other liquid leak through the joint between the lid and the upper edge of the container, no liquid can escape from the container. It should be noted that since almost all of the machine described is made of plastic, the rotating parts thereof are lubricated by the soapy water used for washing laundry.

Three vanes or paddles 9, arranged at to each other, are suitably attached to hollow shaft 11 and to the outer edge of bell 8. The exterior profile of such vanes or paddles is shaped as shown in the drawing, so as to bring the laundry into contact with the interior walls of the container, compressing it slightly against the walls in the area of minimum distance between the latter and the point of maximum width of the vane or paddle, which is of synthetic material and flexible.

In order to allow water and detergents to be introduced into the washing machine, lid 15 has an opening 15b of suitable size, closed by a disc closure member 15a rotatable around a pivot pin 17. Soapy and rinse water is drained oif through hole 6, normally closed by plug 23. The latter will be introduced in such a way as not to project beyond the internal face of the wall through which the hole is provided.

Given the above description, the working of the washing machine is evident: the laundry introduced from the top through the lifting of lid 15 tends to move downwards, where the clearance between the walls of the container and the paddles or vanes is smallest. As crank 14 is swung manually back and forth, the operator will immediately feel the resistance opposed by the internal container wall as the laundry presses against the waHs 4, and this resistance can be increased or decreased by suitably changing the angle through which the crank 14 rotates. Since, as contemplated in this invention, there are three equidistant spaced vanes 9 and four tub walls 4, there will always be an optimum position where the laundry can be given the degree of pressure most suited to its nature and consistency. Therefore, no fixed rules are dictated as to the amplitude of the angle through which crank 14 is to be operated, or as to the resistance (which varies with the varying of the angle of swing) which must be overcome when operating the machine.

On the external face of one or more of the walls of container 4 are traced, by casting or otherwise, level lines 20a for the measuring of the quantity of water introduced into the machine, which is in relation to the weight of laundry to be washed. The highest of these level lines, designated as 20, indicates the largest quantity of water to be introduced when rinsing the laundry.

What I claim is:

1. A portable hand-operated washing machine comprising, a generally square-shaped tub having upstanding vertical side walls, said tub being made of a flexible resilient material, a drain aperture located in the lower portion of one of said walls, a thrust bearing integrally and centrally mounted in the bottom portion of said tub, a cover adapted to close the top opening of said tub, a bearing integrally and centrally mounted in said cover, an agitator located within said tub having a cylindrical central hollow shaft member flaring out in its lower end to form a bell bottom portion, a tapered bearing extending coaxially downwardly from said shaft and adapted to bear within said thrust bearing to position said agitator centrally of said tub, three flexible radially extending vanes mounted upon and spaced uniformly equidistant about said shaft member and bell bottom portion wherein the radial-most edge of said vanes define an arch shaped curvature with respect to said shaft member, a handle having one end extending through said cover bearing and positioned within said shaft member to effect movement of said agitator wherein said vanes describe an arc to converge said vanes upon said vertical walls whereby the contents of said tub may be alternately squeezed and released between said 722,168 Walter Mar. 3, 1903 flexible vanes and said flexible vertical tub walls. ,155,946 Miller Oct. 5, 1915 2. In a portable hand-operated Washing machine, the 1,327,552 551111361 1922 combination of claim 1 wherein as said agitator oscillates 1,113,979 Redmond y 1929 through a predetermined are said vanes converge sequen- 5 fi i fi 3 g r v. tially upon separate vertical s1de Walls. 2,410,323 Wellman Oct 29, 1946 References Cited in the file of this patent 2726529 Clark 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS UNITED STATES PATENTS 319,312 Great Britain Jan. 9, 1930 D.111,523 Pres on p 1938 339,823 France A r. 27, 1904 612,110 Isham Oct. 11, 1898 570,762 France Jan. 21, 1924 

1. A PORTABLE HAND-OPERATED WASHING MACHINE COMPRISING, A GENERALLY SQUARE-SHAPED TUB HAVING UPSTANDING VERTICAL SIDE WALLS, SAID TUB BEING MADE OF A FLEXIBLE RESILIENT MATERIAL, A DRAIN APERTURE LOCATED IN THE LOWER PORTION OF ONE OF SAID WALLS, A THRUST BEARING INTEGRALLY AND CENTRALLY MOUNTED IN THE BOTTOM PORTION OF SAID TUB, A COVER ADAPTED TO CLOSE THE TOP OPENING OF SAID TUB, A BEARING INTEGRALLY AND CENTRALLY MOUNTED IN SAID COVER, AN AGITATOR LOCATED WITHIN SAID TUB HAVING A CYLINDRICAL CENTRAL HOLLOW SHAFT MEMBER FLARING OUT IN ITS LOWER END TO FORM A BELL BOTTOM PORTION, A TAPERED BEARING EXTENDING COAXIALLY DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID SHAFT AND ADAPTED TO BEAR WITHIN SAID THRUST BEARING TO POSITION SAID AGITATOR CENTRALLY OF SAID TUB, THREE FLEXIBLE RADIALLY EXTENDING VANES MOUNTED UPON AND SPACED UNIFORMLY EQUIDISTANT ABOUT SAID SHAFT MEMBER AND BELL BOTTOM PORTION WHEREIN THE RADIAL-MOST EDGE OF SAID VANES DEFINE AN ARCH SHAPED CURVATURE WITH RESPECT TO SAID SHAFT MEMBER, A HANDLE HAVING ONE END EXTENDING THROUGH SAID COVER BEARING AND POSITIONED WITHIN SAID SHAFT MEMBER TO EFFECT MOVEMENT OF SAID AGITATOR WHEREIN SAID VANES DESCRIBE AN ARC TO CONVERGE SAID VANES UPON SAID VERTICAL WALLS WHEREBY THE CONTENTS OF SAID TUB MAY BE ALTERNATELY SQUEEZED AND RELEASED BETWEEN SAID FLEXIBLE VANES AND SAID FLEXIBLE VERTICAL TUB WALLS. 